Farther, Faster: The bleeding-edge tech used by Olympic athletes

Is Oscar Pistorius the first real-life bionic man?

The most visible, and controversial, athletic technology at this year’s games is certainly the “blades” used by double-amputee and Paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius to run track. As his carbon fiber blades bounce along the track, it is easy to imagine that they operate as some sort of high-tech pogo stick and help him achieve super speeds.

Actually, the blades themselves are far from special. They are the same ones that have been available to legless athletes since 1996. Stipulating that he only use widely available prostheses was a key element of the 2008 court ruling that paved the way for Pistorius to compete in this year’s Olympics. As Pistorius points out in supporting his claim that he is a true athlete and not a tech marvel, dozens of other para-athletes use the same prosthetic legs and none have ever come close to the race times he has achieved. In fact, rigorous analysis of the energy gained and lost as the legs bounce off the surface of the track indicates they may be as much as 9% less efficient in storing and returning energy compared to biological legs.

Whatever the reality, by running with artificial legs, the man nicknamed the Blade Runner is opening a new world of possibilities for athletes using technology to overcome physical obstacles to compete in future Olympics.

Putting all these great innovations in perspective, as important as high-tech has become to the Olympics, remember that technical innovation is really only affecting the last 1% or so of an athlete’s performance. The first 99% is still a matter of talent and training.

Tagged In

For anyone curious, Pistorius made it to the semi-finals, but was knocked out before the finals in individual competition. He got to compete in a relay for S. Africa as well though.

http://www.cardinalphoto.com David Cardinal

ed–What I’m curious about is his semi-final time. He finished last & slow, but I didn’t hear if there was some particular reason. Earlier he had tweeted that he felt great and thought he could run in the 44’s. Instead he finished at something like 46.5. NBC interviewed him afterwards, but didn’t ask about his time and he didn’t volunteer.

richfella

Pleeeze – It is “silicone”, NOT “silicon”. You make every scientist cringe with that common mistake.

Interesting! We are seeing all this tech stuff as we watch this year, but not much explanation of it. Had no idea those running suits were dimpled like a golf ball for instance. Thanks for explaining it all in one place.

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